Universal Standard for Braille Displays

In this age of technology, braille displays are frequently connected to devices (computers, tablets and smart phones). Braille display manufacturers and operating systems - companies such as Microsoft, Apple and Google - have worked together to create a braille display standard that is Human interface Driver (HID) compliant. This compliancy means that when a braille display is connected to a computer, the operating system will recognize that it is connected with a braille display. This is similar to how the operating system recognizes a keyboard or mouse. This also means that the keys on all braille displays will interact the same way as the QWERTY HID specifications for alphanumeric and navigation keys and each display manufacturer can also assign custom codes.

This braille standard is new and is a complex task. For the braille HID standard to work, the device needs to identify itself as a braille display (based on the new standard), and the operating systems must support the new standard by including a compatible driver.